Weigh scale apparatus, other than the laboratory balance type, typically comprises a spring element such as a coil or wrapped spring or a torsion bar which is deflected in proportion to applied loads. The traditional means for sensing spring deflection are such that it is difficult and expensive to attain a high degree of accuracy. Thus, an inexpensive device is typically not precise in its measurements. Moreover, the prior art scales are also typically quite sensitive to the point on the pan or load receiving surface at which the load is applied; i.e., a non-centered load on the pan tends to produce an inaccurate reading.
The present invention overcomes the disadvantages of the prior art by providing a scale which can be manufactured so as to produce an extremely high degree of accuracy with relatively little expense and which, in a preferred form, is relatively insensitive to non-centered load applications.